Shiigara: The Swamp Terror
by Immortal Drake
Summary: It was a normal day in the Everglades for three young men, but then they are attacked by a prehistoric monster gator. Next thing you know the gator grows to a monstrous size and goes on a rampage.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hello again, I am Immortal Drake, one of many Godzilla authors on Fanfiction! I had been sitting around thinking on how to make my other stories move forward, but then I remembered I had this sitting around. Read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Godzilla, which belongs to Toho. I only own my OCs and concepts.**

Shiigara: The Swamp Terror

By: Immortal Drake

Lance looked out upon the water and sighed, this was where he belonged, out in a boat in the Everglades. He and his friend Jeb were taking Lance's younger brother Marky out on his first gator hunt. The season had just started, and they were allowed to bag a couple gators each. Marky's real name was Marcus, but everyone called him Marky because it was shorter. His brother kept insisting on being called Mark, but the nickname had been stuck for too long, and Lance was still amused by calling him Marky. Today was perfect, the sky was clear, the water was clearer than usual, and Jeb had already bagged a gator for himself. Lance was waiting for Marky to take aim at one so he could give him pointers on where to aim and what not. They were heading further into the swamp than Lance and Jeb usually did, but it was a special day and a mighty good one too.

They had passed plenty of spots the alligators usually hung out in, but there hadn't been any, which was strange, but they were sure to run into some as they headed further in; so they kept going. They had passed an especially rotted-looking log earlier, Lance remembered, it must have been from a big tree, it was larger than any log he had ever seen before. He knew that alligators had evolved to be able to disguise themselves as logs, but no gator was large enough to be that big. And besides, they needed to be careful not to run into a log, disguised gator or otherwise. They entered a particularly large grove of trees, when activity on the port side caught his attention. He thought he saw something big move, but it must have been his imagination. Then something big shot out of the water and nearly missed crushing him in the boat!

It was an alligator, that was for sure, but it was bigger than any gator he had ever seen or heard about, and the limbs were longer, as well has having more ridged bumps along its back. It was easily longer than their boat, and was nearly capsizing it at the same time from where it sat on the side. The gator was also giving off a deep hiss, and snapped at him repeatedly as he scrambled back. The gator's tail came around and swiped Marky in the chest, knocking him clear off the boat and into the water. "Marky," Lance screamed, but he became more concerned for himself as he started backing closer and closer to where Jeb sat at the controls. The gator was obviously mad, it was hissing and snapping enough. What Lance didn't get was what they had done to anger it, and how he was going to survive. The gator surprised them both when it suddenly reared up on its hind legs and shot a jet of water in Lance's direction; he tried to block it with his right arm, but the water must have been boiling, it seared his flesh and he let out a yelp of pain. Jeb stood up with his .44 revolver drawn and pointed it at the gator. "Get down," Jeb shouted, and as Lance ducked for cover, Jeb shot the gator twice in the side, making it hiss, and the gator retreated back into the water.

"Wh-What was that thing," Lance asked of no one in particular, but then he remembered his brother who had been knocked off the boat. He panicked and searched for his brother, to find him already trying to get back in the boat and holding his chest. "Marky," he said, and went forward to help him in, Jeb as well. As they eased him into the boat, Lance checked him over, "It seems like some broken ribs," he said. "Didn't drop my gun though," said Marky. "No, no you didn't," said Lance, and he looked to where Jeb was walking back to the controls of the boat.

"What are you doing," Lance asked his friend. "What do you think; I'm going to find what that beast was so angry about," said Jeb in answer. "No way, we need to get Marky medical help," said Lance as he bound Marky's chest with gauze strips from the first aid kit they kept on board. Lance continued, "And besides, if that giant gator was guarding something valuable enough to attack us in our boat, then we should best leave it alone." It was only then he noticed the pain in his scalded arm, and so he finished tying Marky and looked for the burn cream they had in the kit. It was there just in case someone burned themselves while working on the engine, and Lance was glad they had it as he tied some strips around the arm. "It also might make us quite rich if we find it," said Jeb. This wasn't convincing enough for Lance, but what could he do in the state he was in, and besides, a part of him did want some kind of compensation for the attack.

It was thus decided that they should head further into the swamp. The water quickly became clogged with debris, so they made for a solid patch of ground. Marky had to be left in the boat, but he didn't seem to mind that much. Lance decided to try and reason with Jeb to go back. "Come on Jeb, this is way too much for us to handle, it nearly killed Marky, let's just go back," said Lance. "Not without something that makes it worth it," was all Jeb said, with a hint of an edge in his voice. Lance was surprised, he had never seen his friend act this way before. It was a little unnerving to Lance, but he didn't want to ask why right now. They came upon a sheltered area next to a small pond; the opposite bank was overshadowed by a particularly thick stand of mangroves. "Let's check out those trees over there," said Jeb. "You sure," asked Lance, "It may be protected by that monster gator we saw earlier." "Nope," said Jeb, "that was a mama gator back there, she must have been protecting something she was willing to risk being shot for, so that makes it valuable to us." Lance really didn't like where this was going, an alligator was dangerous enough, but a mother gator protecting eggs or offspring was a very lethal danger. But there seemed to be nothing other than the value of what the gator could be protecting on Jeb's mind, as he surged on ahead towards the grove.

**A/N: Alright readers, if you can tell where this situation is going, don't spoil it for anyone else, I mean it, or I'll sic the gator on you! Just kidding, but seriously, no spoilers.**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello again readers, thanks for being patient in waiting for the next chapter in Shiigara: the Swamp Terror! Now we actually get to see some things from the gator's point of view, and a short fight.**

**I'll also take this time to answer a question: GFan1, I am planning on going forward with Dragulus, but I don't have a beginning, I have a point in the next story I want to go to, but I need the start first.**

**Disclaimer: See the Prologue. Without further ado, read, review, and enjoy.**

She was hurt, badly, and bleeding. It was easy enough to tell, with the blood trail she was leaving in the water. She needed to get back to her nest, to her eggs, but she needed to nurse her wounds first. She hadn't seen that male, the father of her eggs, for a long time; maybe those two-legged things had hunted him down, they had been able to hurt her easily enough. With those strange things that made noise like thunder, but hurt worse than a bite, she wasn't sure how to move forward. One instinct urged her to go to her nest, but another told her to go to a place to rest. The urge to rest and nurse her wounds won out, she found a semi-circle of trees, curled up at the base, and fell asleep. As she closed her eyes, she felt a warmth closing around her, almost like the warmth she had felt from her mother a long time ago.

She awoke, but things felt different, strange. There was something pressing against her tail, but she couldn't tell what it was. She twisted herself around and saw, it was a mass of trees, but that wasn't right, they were much smaller than she remembered. The pain of her wounds was gone, and so were the injuries themselves. This rapid healing made her happy, and she seemed to have grown since she had slept, she now towered over the trees. Now she wanted to see what those puny things thought of her now, now that she could simply crush them under her feet. But she had to check her nest first, to make sure the eggs were okay. She headed forward through the trees, making a beeline for her nest. Everything in the water was now much easier to spot, but the trees now made a more challenging obstacle. The other wildlife ran at her approach, but they did not distract her, she needed to get to her nest, she needed to make sure it had not been disturbed. She found the grove, and the stand of trees that sheltered her nest. Something was wrong, one or more other creatures had been searching through the nest, the vegetation she had laid out on the eggs was scattered, but the eggs themselves were gone. She was filled with sadness and grief, so much so that she let out a loud hissing growl into the sky, sending flocks of birds scrambling from their roosts. She was filled with rage as well; whatever took her eggs was going to pay, dearly.

She sniffed around the nest, careful not to damage it more than it had been, and she knew what had been through her nest; those two-legged things she had encountered earlier. She knew their smell, a strange, sickly yet sweet scent, like a fruit that had rotted partly; but also like the bowels of the earth beneath her feet. Those things had been here, but had now left, and not long ago. She needed to find her eggs, but the beings had taken them away. Their scent would lead her to them, no matter how much of a lead they had. She turned; ready to follow the scent, when she was confronted by a newcomer, something as big as herself.

* * *

Battra stood up, observing the giant alligator. He could sense the danger posed by this creature to the Earth, and its mounting anger and rage. But this was a creature newly made into a giant; surely it couldn't be used to its new body by now. This made Battra feel confident that he could defeat this creature without resorting to his Imago form, and so he squared off with it, moving to its left slowly. The alligator tracked him, keeping its jaws partly opened. Battra knew an alligator's jaws and body were very powerful, but he was sure his exoskeleton would protect him if he underestimated this being. This creature looked like it came from Earth's past, possibly a relic from a bygone age, then Battra realized that it _was_ an alligator from before humans had evolved; now it had become a giant. What puzzled Battra was how, but his focus had been gone too long, and he was nearly chomped by the alligator's jaws as he sprang to the side, barely avoiding the alligator's jaws by mere inches. Battra regained his composure and released his Prism beams from his eyes into his enemy's hide. This only created sparks and smoke, and enraged the alligator, which again lunged, but this time caught hold of Battra's midsection. Battra could only look dumbfounded as he was lifted up like a toy and tossed over the alligator's back. He hit the ground, hard, and felt perplexed that he had been tossed around so easily. He lay on his side, stunned, as he saw the alligator turn towards him. There was something missing, Battra thought, a reason for the danger he felt to the Earth; he couldn't figure out what, and it bothered him greatly. He couldn't think why now, and thus he gathered his energy, enveloping himself in the energy the Earth itself had given him. With a bright orange flash, Battra spread his wings in his Imago form, and took flight; circling as his opponent hissed and growled.

* * *

This was so frustrating! Her opponent had tough armor that she hadn't penetrated, and now was flying beyond her reach. She leapt upward, using her ability to rear up on her hind legs to take swipes at her opponent. But the moth simply flew around her attacks, and shot her with those annoying purple beams from its eyes. Next her opponent tried launching stingers from its tail, but those simply bounced off of her hide. She had had enough; she reared up, clenched the muscles in her gut, and shot forth a torrent of water from her maw. This ability she and her kind used to hunt land creatures more successfully than their smaller cousins. The moth must have been surprised, for it took the full force of the steaming water. The moth fell out of the sky, screeching in pain as steam rose off its armor. Her opponent's armor may have protected it from her teeth, but not the heat of the water she could summon from within. She would have to refill her water gorge before she met those two-legged creatures again, she was running low, but that would be easy. She dipped her maw into a nearby open stretch of water, refilled her water gorge, and checked her nest again. She had the scent, and now she knew where they had gone with her eggs. It wouldn't be far, so she followed the river to the great body of water that smelled of salt, and walked straight in. It was cold, but it matched the feeling in her heart, she would show no mercy until she got her eggs back.

**A/N: Now you know why the Battra tag is in the story properties, cool huh? Fun Fact: the spell check actually suggested Shinar as opposed to Shiigara, who knew.**

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	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Alright folks, here's the next chapter of Shiigara: The Swamp Terror. Things will come to a head, and Shiigara will meet her nemesis yet again.**

**Disclaimer: See Prologue.**

Lance was really starting to worry about Jeb, who was talking on his cell phone, to who Lance didn't know. He seemed to be trying to drum up a buyer for the eggs they had found. They were in Lance's truck driving back home. They sort of lived in the same neighborhood, in Brownsville, near Miami. They were actually just entering the city limits of Miami when Jeb got off the phone and told him to take a left off the Interstate. Marky simply napped in the back seats, next to the eggs. Lance was really nervous; the eggs gave him a bad feeling, like they were drawing a gruesome fate down on the three of them. They came upon what looked like a pawn shop; the glass pane facing the street said they bought everything and anything. The owners must be the ones buying the eggs. Lance was certain this was a very bad thing to do, and illegal, but Jeb had an almost dangerous look in his eyes, and Lance kept quiet. When they had parked, Lance got out to go with Jeb into the store. "I thought you didn't like this kind of thing," said Jeb. "You're right, I don't," answered Lance, "I'll just make sure they aren't harmed." Jeb only gave a grunt in answer and collected the eggs. Marky said he would just wait in the truck, so Lance and Jeb walked in the door.

The place smelled musty, and the owners seemed to be pack rats, for the merchandise was practically everywhere. Lance saw the skeleton of a snake coiled around a stuffed rabbit, arranged so it looked like it was striking the rabbit. He also saw an armoire full of jars that had unidentifiable substances in them. The place freaked him out, but Jeb seemed unaffected by the unnerving spectacle around them. They walked up to the front desk, and Lance saw a TV mounted on the wall to the right. Jeb rang the bell on the desk and a man came into view. He was somewhat short and stocky, and overweight, but carried himself gracefully somehow. The man was dressed casually, and came quickly to the desk. "What may I help you with, anything strike your fancy," he asked. "We're looking to sell," said Jeb, and he put the eggs on the desk. The man looked at the eggs, then back to Jeb, then said, "What is it exactly you have there son." "What I have here, are some orphaned alligator eggs, in need of a good home," said Jeb, then continued, "We shot their mama by accident and we were thinking that we should put them in a safe place, and we knew you would find one." "The place you describe would be the Wildlife Preserve, youngster, and these look a little big for an alligator." "Yes, but we were looking to make some compensation for the injuries inflicted upon us by their mother." "Oh, I see," said the man behind the desk with a pointed look at Lance, who squirmed inside under it. "Well, can't have these little babies without a home, I'll pay you $450." "I'm thinking a little more than that," said Jeb in answer. "Fine, how about, an even $600, and I'll make sure they go to the Preserve." "Deal," said Jeb, and Lance gave an internal sigh of relief. It was then a news bulletin caught his ear. "There is an evacuation in place for the city of Miami and other surrounding areas, for a giant alligator has come ashore at Miami Beach and is making a beeline inland," said the male newscaster. His female counterpart added, "This monster is 35 meters tall at the shoulder and wrecking everything in its path." They showed a clip from a news helicopter as it circled the monster, and Lance gasped in surprise. The extended back ridges, the longer than normal limbs, and the jets of water it showered buildings with, it could only be one thing, the mother of those eggs.

* * *

This was the place; this was where she could sense her eggs had been taken to. It was full of the puny two-legs. She smashed their structures with her tail, bashed them with her head, and soaked them with the boiling water from her gut. She would not stop until she found her children. There was a smaller body of water between her and the bigger grouping of two-legs' structures; it would be simple to cross. She swam across, but was greeted by a line of what looked like strange things of metal. She realized too late these were weapons as they discharged into her face. It didn't hurt her, but it was extremely annoying. She simply whipped herself around and swept the annoying things away with her tail. She proceeded inland. The small, narrow paths made it difficult for her to move like she was used to, so she made them wider with her shoulders and tail. She reared at one particularly troublesome building, turned her head sideways, clamped down with her jaws, and started twisting and heaving back and forth.

* * *

Lance saw the news station cut to a field reporter, he couldn't read the name, he was too focused on what was going on behind. He was giving a report on the chaotic and ruthless nature of the beast, now named Shiigara, as the National Guard fired on it behind him. He also stated that the U.S. military was on its way to attack the monster. Lance could only watch in horror as the alligator took a section of a building in its jaws, and separated it from the rest of the structure. He saw the alligator give the building section it held a heave, sending it flying towards the reporter and the soldiers. The reporter realized what happened too late, only getting out a terrified, "Oh my G…" before the feed went to static. Lance knew what the outcome had been, the reporter, crew, and Guardsmen had been crushed under literally tons of debris. He knew the reason why, and the guilt he felt was unbelievable. He looked around at the shopkeeper and Jeb, and saw only shock. Jeb seemed to come back to reality, and he shoved the eggs towards the shopkeeper saying, "They're yours now." "Oh no, I don't want anything to do with them, I can put two and two together," said the shopkeeper in response, backing away from the eggs like they were cursed. He continued, "I can tell that that's the mama of those eggs on the TV, and you should give 'em back to her." "Absolutely not, we found them, she didn't do a good job of hiding them, now we can do what we want," answered Jeb. The two of them were cut off as Lance shushed them and pointed to the TV screen. "An update on the crisis here in Miami," said the female newscaster, "a black beetle-like moth has been seen flying towards the giant alligator, and we have been told that this is Battra, a guardian of Earth, counterpart to Mothra." "It seems like he is here to save us," said the male newscaster, "or maybe the alligator owes him money, heh heh." Even Lance could tell the newsman was trying to be light about it, but was too nervous.

* * *

She could sense her eggs were near, she was so close, but a call interrupted her thoughts. She turned to the sound, and saw her moth opponent from earlier. She hissed, trying to get him to go away, but the moth persisted. The moth released more of those stingers, aiming for her head; she closed her eyes and felt them bounce off her hide. She hissed again, reared, and snapped her jaws at the moth, but he was just out of her reach. She came down with a thunderous impact, cracking the ground beneath her, and growled. She was truly enraged now; nothing would stop her in her quest. She moved down the two-legs' path, in the direction she could sense her eggs. The moth seemed intent on keeping her from them, as he swooped down and strafed her with the purple beams, causing slight pain along her back. He came again, this time raking his claws along the same path. This time he broke her skin, only in long shallow cuts, but it was pain. It gave her an idea; she waited until the moth turned for another pass. When he was in reach, she leapt up, and smashed the moth with her head. The moth seemed dazed by the attack as it spiraled downward. She knew now that if she gave this opponent any ground to recover, he would come back at her again. So she went down a side path, and went back until there was a two-legs' structure between them. She reared up, put her forelimbs on it, and using her tail as balance she pushed and shoved against it.

**A/N: Oh boy, this can't be good for Battra, poor moth. Anyway, I should tell you that what Jeb is trying to do is definitely wrong and most likely illegal (I'm not a lawyer), so do not do follow this example.**


	4. Epilogue

**A/N: Hello again readers, and welcome to the epilogue of Shiigara: The Swamp Terror. Last chapter left us at a bit of a cliffhanger, but I think this will be rather self-explanatory. Read, review, and enjoy. And without further ado.**

**Disclaimer: See Prologue.**

Battra was seeing stars; he couldn't believe that an enraged opponent could use strategy like that. Even more, his opponent had turned the tables so effectively, he was sure she would leave again. That, he assumed, was why he couldn't see her now. Then he heard the sound of screaming, bending metal, and he saw the building in front of him start to bend. To his horror he realized the alligator must be pushing against it from the other side. He saw it bend more, then it finally gave way, and Battra saw the tons of concrete and steel come crashing down on top of him.

* * *

It was done, she was sure this time, she sniffed the pile of debris, yes, the moth was still under there. Now she was free to pursue the thieves who took her eggs. She was very close, only a few more steps away, she could see a machine the two-legs used to move about. A two-legs got out and ran into a structure nearby, it smelled of her eggs. She recognized it from the incident where she was wounded the first time. It was a modest structure, and smaller than her, she reared slightly and raked her claws across the top, revealing the two-legs inside. What was more, they had her eggs.

* * *

Lance could only look upward in horror as the alligator glared down at them. He thought this is what it must be like for an ant to look up at a spider, as it prepared to chow down on the ant. The shopkeeper, quivering, looked at Jeb and said, "Well, go on, give 'em to her." But Jeb seemed paralyzed. Marky seemed rooted to the spot as well, and why shouldn't he be, Lance thought, he himself felt like he could barely move as well. Suddenly, a golden powder drifted downward from the sky. It seemed to calm the gator down, and it had a soothing effect on everyone in the shop was well, Lance could feel himself calming, his heart rate slowing to normal. It was then he saw why, a giant moth hovered over them and the gator, but this one seemed more benevolent than Battra. It was then he realized he was looking at Mothra, the most compassionate of all Earth's guardians. He looked at the counter when he saw two tiny women, each only a couple inches tall, materialize there.

They must be the Cosmos, the liaisons between Mothra and humanity. He looked upon them with reverence, but they instead turned to Jeb, and their faces darkened. They said in unison, "You, human, have wronged this poor mother, taken her unborn children for your own gain, and believed yourself right in doing so." Jeb tried to defend himself, but they cut him off, "And you have brought misery upon many in service to your greed and only the compassion of Mothra has saved you." Jeb simply hung his head, and mumbled. The Cosmos seemed to think he had had enough, and they said, "You had good reason, in the beginning, simply trying to look out for your friends who had gotten hurt, but it turned to greed so quickly." The twin fairies then turned to Lance, "You, however, wanted to leave the offspring alone, but were too afraid yourself," Lance felt stung, but they were right, he had wanted to act, but hadn't. Lance then remembered, "Wait, the military is coming right now to destroy Shiigara." "Mothra has stayed their hand," replied the fairies, "So Shiigara may leave in peace, with her eggs." They heard a sound, shifting metal and stone, and saw Battra clawing his way out of his supposed grave. He looked a mess, his wings were torn in multiple areas, and his exoskeleton wasn't in much better shape. Shiigara turned toward Battra and hissed, but the Cosmos intervened, speaking to her directly, but letting Lance and the others hear, "No, queen of the swamps, Battra will not harm you or your eggs anymore, so long as you leave the humans in peace." This seemed to placate the gator, although Lance could have sworn she had liked being called a queen, and so he scooped up the eggs in his arms, and carried them outside. He then laid them at Shiigara's feet, and stepped back. He watched Shiigara carefully, tenderly; scoop the eggs into her mouth, then turn and walk in the direction of the Everglades. That was where her home was, and Lance, Jeb, and Marky had to get to theirs. They piled into the truck, and waved to the Cosmos and Mothra as they turned towards home.

THE END

**A/N: Woo, and Mothra for the save! Now Shiigara has a happy ending for her and her babies, oh boy.**


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